LinkedIn is one of the most popular professional networking platforms, with over 740 million members worldwide as of January 2022. With so many professionals using LinkedIn to connect, network, and search for jobs or employees, an important question arises – are LinkedIn searches anonymous?
In short, basic LinkedIn searches are anonymous for the person doing the searching. When you search for people, companies, jobs, groups, etc. on LinkedIn, the people and pages you are searching for cannot see that you viewed their profile or page. However, there are some exceptions, which we’ll cover below.
LinkedIn Search Basics
When you perform a basic search on LinkedIn, looking up people, companies, jobs, content, etc., LinkedIn does not notify those people or pages that you viewed their profile or content. For example:
- If you search for someone’s name and view their LinkedIn profile, they will not receive any notification that you looked at their profile.
- If you view a company’s LinkedIn page, the company will not know you looked at their page.
- If you look through job listings on LinkedIn, the employers posting those jobs do not know who viewed or applied to their job posting.
Therefore, basic LinkedIn searches are anonymous from the searcher’s perspective. LinkedIn does not reveal to other users that you looked at their profile or page. This allows you to research people, companies, and opportunities on LinkedIn privately without anyone knowing you are looking into them.
When LinkedIn Searches Are Not Anonymous
While basic searches on LinkedIn are anonymous, there are some exceptions where your LinkedIn activity can be visible. This includes:
Paid LinkedIn Account Features
LinkedIn offers several “premium” account features and services that provide more information about who viewed your profile and pages. Here are some examples:
- LinkedIn Recruiter. With a Recruiter account, you can see who specifically is viewing and interacting with job postings you have listed.
- LinkedIn Sales Navigator. This paid feature shows you who has viewed your LinkedIn profile in the past 90 days, allowing for more focused sales prospecting.
- LinkedIn Premium Accounts. Paid Premium accounts allow you to see more profile views and viewer demographics.
So if you are interacting with LinkedIn Recruiter job postings, or viewing someone’s profile who has a Premium account, they may be notified or be able to see that you looked at their post or profile.
“People Also Viewed” Suggestions
LinkedIn’s algorithms also connect people who view similar profiles and pages. For example, if you look at Bob’s and Fred’s profiles, LinkedIn may show Bob and Fred that they are connected through you having viewed both their profiles.
So you won’t show up by name, but people may be able to see you in the “People Also Viewed” recommendations if you view enough of their profiles.
Connecting or Messaging
Of course, if you directly connect with someone by sending an invite or messaging them through LinkedIn, the other user will know you took that action. Simple profile viewing is anonymous, but connecting or messaging notifies the other user.
Does LinkedIn Notify Profile Views?
By default, LinkedIn does not notify users when someone views their profile. As mentioned above, there are some exceptions if the user has a premium account or is using paid services like Recruiter.
But in most cases, people will not receive any alert or notification when you view their profile. The only way they would know you looked at their profile is if you connect with them or message them after viewing their profile.
How to Know Who Viewed Your Profile
As a free LinkedIn user, you can see the last 5 profiles that viewed yours in the last 90 days. To see this:
- Go to your LinkedIn profile
- Click “See all profile views” below your profile photo
- This shows the last 5 people who have viewed your profile
With a Premium account, you can see more profile viewers and get view analytics. Paid account features like Recruiter also give more insight into who is viewing your content and profiles.
Does Private Browsing Work on LinkedIn?
Using private or incognito browsing when viewing LinkedIn profiles does not make your views anonymous or hide your activity. LinkedIn still tracks profile views in the same way whether in regular or private browsing mode.
The only practical effect private browsing has is that it does not store cookies or browsing history locally on your own device. But LinkedIn still has their own records of the activity occurring on their platform.
LinkedIn Profile View Notifications
So in summary, basic LinkedIn profile viewing and searching is anonymous without any notifications or alerts to others. However, there are some cases where LinkedIn does show more information:
- Premium account holders can see more information on who viewed their profile, up to 90 days.
- Paid services like Recruiter notify employers who is looking at their job postings.
- “People also viewed” suggestions may indirectly connect people viewing similar profiles.
- Direct connection requests or messages obviously notify the receiving person.
But most everyday searching and viewing of profiles does not trigger any notifications or reveal your identity to others. You can research people and companies privately without them knowing in most cases.
Conclusion
In general, viewing LinkedIn profiles and pages is anonymous without notifications to others. Basic LinkedIn searching and browsing doesn’t reveal your identity or activity to the people and companies you are viewing. There are some exceptions when paid premium account features are used, but the majority of LinkedIn users do not receive alerts when you view their profile or content.
So when researching people, jobs, or companies on LinkedIn, you can do so privately without them being notified in most cases. However, any direct interaction such as connecting, messaging, or commenting would reveal your identity and interest to the receiving party. Simple viewing stays anonymous.
